House Galm
Summary: An illustrious – and some would say reckless – band of Knightly Scions and their respective Knight warframes, House Galm is (in)famous for its highly independent nature. Answering only to their elected leader, the Knights wage bloody war across the stars in the name of honour, glory, and outdoing each other in quite literally titanic acts of one-upmanship.
History: Little is known about the origins of the House, save that in times gone by a band of Freeblades united against a common foe infesting the world of Anatolia, the names of both the threat and the Freeblades themselves lost to the ages. Now known only as the Seven Founders, these Knights fought with such bravery and skill that the Imperium saw fit to grant them a fine reward: custodianship of the planet itself. With this boon, the Freeblades soon established themselves as a proper Knight House, though chose no unifying heraldry or colours – like the wanderers that founded it, the Knights would remain tailored to the individual.
House Galm would fight on in their own name for many millennia, their fortunes rising and falling like a tide. Reliant entirely on induction of other Freeblades to acquire new Knight frames, the numbers of Knights fluctuated wildly throughout the years – the House fielded a full twenty-seven Knights against an Ork invasion in late M37, but by early M39 were barely scraping along with four, forced to blackmail several Freeblades into replenishing the ranks. While the more conservative amongst the Imperium would dismiss this as poor combat doctrine, the simple truth is that, by their very nature as a Freeblade-founded House, many members would seek their own fortune elsewhere, sometimes never returning.
By late M41 House Galm, were it to deploy all of its Knights at once, could field a respectable tally of seventeen war-engines. Though a far cry from its glory days, the Knight Scions remain stubbornly prideful in their House, and this number of Knight frames is certainly not a laughable one by any count.
Tactics: There is no set tactic for House Galm. Rather, operational procedure depends on a variety of variables: the theatre of war, the nature of the enemy, and the Knights themselves. For example, a Lancer or Gallant would likely favour courageous (albeit reckless) flank charges into the enemy lines, while a Castellan would probably be more inclined to shoot their foes down from afar. In the end, tactics are the purview of the Knight Scions themselves – their mastery of their Knight frames, and control over the machine spirits within, is what will decide their actions.
Organisation: The leader of the House, the Marshal, is elected by majority vote by the other Knight Scions, though a tie vote is often settled by honour duels (rumours that Scions have deliberately voted to ensure a duel occurs are, of course, nonsense). Though the Marshal does not technically outrank their fellow Knight Scions, their word is one of the few authorities they listen to. The current Marshal is Cadmus Thurston, one of a rare breed of Knight Scions who actually hail from the local nobility – he inherited the Knight from a Scion who had no next of kin to carry on their legacy, and thus adopted Cadmus.
The Marshal will elect a Knight from amongst their brethren to serve as their Ward. This is seen as a great honour in the House, a highly-coveted position that requires the notice of the Marshal themselves above all others to attain, and is often just as sought after as leadership itself. Dishonourable or underhanded acts can see one’s position as Ward revoked, however, and the position is even more prone to honour duels to decide the worthiness of the bearer than that of Marshal. Currently, the position of Ward remains unfilled, and Marshal Thurston is contemplating how he will decide on the new bearer.
Otherwise, there are no set formations in House operations. Knights choose where they wish to deploy whenever they wish to do so, and with whatever assistance they can get from other Knights, though if the Marshal proposes or condemns a plan, their fellow pilots tend to listen.
Forces: The number of Knights in the House, their pilots, and their loadouts, vary wildly over time. Currently, the House can field seventeen frames, with at least one Acheron (Obsidian Hound) and Lancer (Dawnstar Valkyrie) confirmed to be fielded currently. Only one of the Seven Founder’s Knights has survived to modern times: the Lancer Dawnstar Valkyrie, whose Scion, Annabeth Weiss, is only the latest in the lineage of pilots leading straight back to the Founder themselves. The fates and final resting places of the remaining Six are unknown, and remain a mystery.
Notable Locations: Anatolia remains the home of House Galm to this day. A Feudal World with somewhat more advanced technological knowledge than most – a peasant would probably know what a rifle was if he saw it, though he likely wouldn’t own one himself – the non-Knightly forces rely on las-locks, mono-edged blades, and elegantly crafted flakweave suits to protect their homes. The local nobility remain somewhat disdainful of the presence of the Scions – they are outside their chain of command and can technically pull rank on anyone short of the High King (Governor), which gets their blue blood boiling at times. The House maintains its own fortress, the Onyx Watch, and its own stock of Sacristans and serfs.
Notable Members:
Summary: An illustrious – and some would say reckless – band of Knightly Scions and their respective Knight warframes, House Galm is (in)famous for its highly independent nature. Answering only to their elected leader, the Knights wage bloody war across the stars in the name of honour, glory, and outdoing each other in quite literally titanic acts of one-upmanship.
History: Little is known about the origins of the House, save that in times gone by a band of Freeblades united against a common foe infesting the world of Anatolia, the names of both the threat and the Freeblades themselves lost to the ages. Now known only as the Seven Founders, these Knights fought with such bravery and skill that the Imperium saw fit to grant them a fine reward: custodianship of the planet itself. With this boon, the Freeblades soon established themselves as a proper Knight House, though chose no unifying heraldry or colours – like the wanderers that founded it, the Knights would remain tailored to the individual.
House Galm would fight on in their own name for many millennia, their fortunes rising and falling like a tide. Reliant entirely on induction of other Freeblades to acquire new Knight frames, the numbers of Knights fluctuated wildly throughout the years – the House fielded a full twenty-seven Knights against an Ork invasion in late M37, but by early M39 were barely scraping along with four, forced to blackmail several Freeblades into replenishing the ranks. While the more conservative amongst the Imperium would dismiss this as poor combat doctrine, the simple truth is that, by their very nature as a Freeblade-founded House, many members would seek their own fortune elsewhere, sometimes never returning.
By late M41 House Galm, were it to deploy all of its Knights at once, could field a respectable tally of seventeen war-engines. Though a far cry from its glory days, the Knight Scions remain stubbornly prideful in their House, and this number of Knight frames is certainly not a laughable one by any count.
Tactics: There is no set tactic for House Galm. Rather, operational procedure depends on a variety of variables: the theatre of war, the nature of the enemy, and the Knights themselves. For example, a Lancer or Gallant would likely favour courageous (albeit reckless) flank charges into the enemy lines, while a Castellan would probably be more inclined to shoot their foes down from afar. In the end, tactics are the purview of the Knight Scions themselves – their mastery of their Knight frames, and control over the machine spirits within, is what will decide their actions.
Organisation: The leader of the House, the Marshal, is elected by majority vote by the other Knight Scions, though a tie vote is often settled by honour duels (rumours that Scions have deliberately voted to ensure a duel occurs are, of course, nonsense). Though the Marshal does not technically outrank their fellow Knight Scions, their word is one of the few authorities they listen to. The current Marshal is Cadmus Thurston, one of a rare breed of Knight Scions who actually hail from the local nobility – he inherited the Knight from a Scion who had no next of kin to carry on their legacy, and thus adopted Cadmus.
The Marshal will elect a Knight from amongst their brethren to serve as their Ward. This is seen as a great honour in the House, a highly-coveted position that requires the notice of the Marshal themselves above all others to attain, and is often just as sought after as leadership itself. Dishonourable or underhanded acts can see one’s position as Ward revoked, however, and the position is even more prone to honour duels to decide the worthiness of the bearer than that of Marshal. Currently, the position of Ward remains unfilled, and Marshal Thurston is contemplating how he will decide on the new bearer.
Otherwise, there are no set formations in House operations. Knights choose where they wish to deploy whenever they wish to do so, and with whatever assistance they can get from other Knights, though if the Marshal proposes or condemns a plan, their fellow pilots tend to listen.
Forces: The number of Knights in the House, their pilots, and their loadouts, vary wildly over time. Currently, the House can field seventeen frames, with at least one Acheron (Obsidian Hound) and Lancer (Dawnstar Valkyrie) confirmed to be fielded currently. Only one of the Seven Founder’s Knights has survived to modern times: the Lancer Dawnstar Valkyrie, whose Scion, Annabeth Weiss, is only the latest in the lineage of pilots leading straight back to the Founder themselves. The fates and final resting places of the remaining Six are unknown, and remain a mystery.
Notable Locations: Anatolia remains the home of House Galm to this day. A Feudal World with somewhat more advanced technological knowledge than most – a peasant would probably know what a rifle was if he saw it, though he likely wouldn’t own one himself – the non-Knightly forces rely on las-locks, mono-edged blades, and elegantly crafted flakweave suits to protect their homes. The local nobility remain somewhat disdainful of the presence of the Scions – they are outside their chain of command and can technically pull rank on anyone short of the High King (Governor), which gets their blue blood boiling at times. The House maintains its own fortress, the Onyx Watch, and its own stock of Sacristans and serfs.
Notable Members:
- Marshal Cadmus Thurston, Obsidian Hound (Knight Acheron)
- Scion Annabeth Weiss, Dawnstar Valkyrie (Knight Lancer)